Old Frisian

Old Frisian was the West Germanic language spoken between the 8th and 16th centuries by the people who, from their ancient homes in North Germany and Denmark, had settled in the area between the Rhine and Elbe on the European North Sea coast in the 4th and 5th centuries. It is not known what language the earlier inhabitants of the region (the Frisians famously mentioned by Tacitus) used.

During the whole of the Middle Ages Friesland was monolingual and autonomous, but Latin was the written and official language; there are some early Frisian names preserved in Latin texts, but the oldest surviving texts in Old Frisian date from the 13th century. They show a considerable degree of linguistic uniformity.

After Friesland (now the Dutch province Friesland) lost its independence and became part of the Dutch Republic, Old Frisian lost its status. The period 1550 - 1800 is designated Middle Frisian, when the language was rarely recorded in writing. Modern Frisian, which had broken into three dialects in the intervening centuries, begins after 1800. Modern Frisian to all intents is West Frisian.

There exist runic inscriptions in Old Frisian, and from the 13th century until 1550, official and legal documents survive.

Because Old Frisian was spoken by the same people who had settled in England, there is a close resemblance between Old Frisian and Old English.